Top News:
Joe Berkowitz / Fast Company:
The Washington Post homepage was dominated by a Trump campaign ad on Thursday, sparking a furious debate as some say the purchase will fund journalism — The digital home of the Washington Post, that venerated beacon of American journalism, is currently an exercise in cognitive dissonance.
Discussion:
@glennkesslerwp, @jeffjarvis, @mlcalderone, The Media Nut, @jayrosen_nyu, @briannawu, Poynter, @bjmendelson, @digiphile, @jjohnsonlaw, @mikeshepherdme, @mcclure111, @sarafischer, @seanmdav, @kurtschlichter, @fastcompany, @oliverdarcy, @owillis, @fraying, @marynmck, @dansinker, @damemagazine, @timjhogan, @rauchway, @mrbromwich, @ericboehlert, @amandacrumleyla, @ianbremmer, @sonnybunch, @jayrosen_nyu, @mattgertz, @vivian and The Week
Hanaa' Tameez / Nieman Lab:
Gannett releases workforce demographics of USA Today and its local outlets for the first time, along with its goals for diversity and inclusion by 2025 — On Thursday, Gannett, the parent company of USA Today and more than 260 daily local news outlets in the United States …
Discussion:
Axios, USA Today, USA Today, MediaPost, @svdate, @nicole_carroll, @ibwellssociety, @mattklewis, Florida Times Union, @niemanlab, Democrat and Chronicle and The Wrap
Matt Mullenweg / @photomatt:
Matt Mullenweg says Apple locked WordPress updates on iOS, and won't unlock them unless WordPress commits to support in-app purchases for .com plans — Heads up on why @WordPressiOS updates have been absent... we were locked by App Store. To be able to ship updates and bug fixes again we had to commit to support in-app purchases for .com plans. I know why this is problematic, open to suggestions. Allow others IAP? New name?
Discussion:
AppleInsider, 9to5Mac, @nexusben, The Verge, @firt, @leah_nylen, @baekdal, @baekdal, @tprstly, @irace, @tomwarren, @alexhern, @carnage4life, @ismh, @caseynewton and @benthompson, more at Techmeme »
Benjamin Mullin / Wall Street Journal:
A trade body representing NYT, WaPo, WSJ, and other publishers asks Apple for improved deal terms for digital subscriptions sold through the App Store — The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal are among companies seeking more favorable terms in Apple's app store
Discussion:
CNBC, VentureBeat, Press Gazette, What's New in Publishing, The Verge, @ryan_browne_, CNET, Beyond Search, The Hill, Ad Age, @rasmus_kleis, Light Reading, MediaNama, @wsj, @stevekopack, @jason_kint, @jbenton, @dcnorg, @michellemanafy, @kerrymflynn, @davegershgorn, @horaciog, @benmullin, Digital Content Next, 9to5Mac and AppleInsider, more at Techmeme »
Sarah Scire / Nieman Lab:
BBC Sport strengthens moderation policies for its comments sections and vows to keep growing coverage of women's sports — BBC Sport has a message for its 8.5 million followers on Twitter. The pinned tweet is part promise, part mission statement. — The BBC exists for all of us, so it should represent all of us.
Discussion:
getrevue.co and @sarahscire
Alex Kantrowitz / OneZero:
Q&A with Verge's Casey Newton on newsletter writing and how trust in tech press is eroded by algorithms, including Twitter's amplification of “snarky bastards” — The Verge's Silicon Valley editor discusses tech media, recent issues with Facebook, and more
Discussion:
@mvzelenks, Big Technology, @chaykak, @kantrowitz, @ericnewcomer, @rmac18, @caseynewton, @mat, @kantrowitz, @mathewi and @kerrymflynn, Thanks:@bigtechnology
Deadline:
Executive pay cuts triggered by the pandemic ended July 31 at Fox as planned and, sources say, Disney cuts will be lifted August 23 — EXCLUSIVE: Thousands of executives across The Walt Disney Company and Fox Corporation are getting their paychecks restored to pre-COVID-19 levels.
Discussion:
Crain's New York Business and @datelinedisney
Tim Schwab / Columbia Journalism Review:
A look at the correlation between the $250M+ in journalism grants the Gates Foundation has made and the overwhelmingly positive coverage it has received — Last August, NPR profiled a Harvard-led experiment to help low-income families find housing in wealthier neighborhoods …
Discussion:
@acpark1, @fheinderyckx, @timothywschwab, @cjr, @leoniehaimson, @thensim0nsaid and @alexspcm
Karlene Lukovitz / MediaPost:
Digital Entertainment Group: total consumer home entertainment spending was up 26% YoY to $15.1B in H1 2020 with spending on digital formats up 37% YoY — In another perspective on the streaming video lift driven by the pandemic's stay-at-home mode, preliminary sales data …
Discussion:
FierceVideo and Multichannel News
Lucinda Southern / Digiday:
WSJ CRO says 65% of the paper's ad revenue comes from B2B advertisers and that CPMs have grown 15% in the last year thanks to its first-party data collection — The tumultuous tides in media are still turning, and not all publishers are affected equally. A tense advertising landscape …
Discussion:
MediaPost
Charlotte Tobitt / Press Gazette:
News UK is proposing to shut down its monthly standalone Sunday Times Travel Magazine, affecting six staff — News UK is proposing to close its monthly standalone Sunday Times Travel Magazine to focus resources on the newspaper and its digital offerings. — About six members of staff work …
Kanishka Singh / Reuters:
Oregon judge grants injunction against federal officers, exempting journalists from dispersal orders and barring the seizure of photo, audio, or video equipment — (Reuters) - A U.S. judge granted a preliminary injunction on Thursday against federal officers, exempting journalists …
Discussion:
Oregonian